On Mon, 29 Mar 2004 23:41:23 +0100, "Bob Hobden"
wrote:

Yes, I agree with Nick, common problem with all citrus, shame you cut the
tree back as they can be removed with a fingernail (messy) or blasted off
with a sprayer full of water with a drip of washing up liquid. Go over the
whole plant leaf by leaf and stem by stem making sure you get the tiny ones
in the cracks. Takes time and you will get wet too.
After a couple of weeks repeat the procedure and inspect your plants closely
in future for this nasty pest which is persistent.
The stickiness is their waste product. :-)

Thanks for your help. I'm sure I tried washing up liquid before, but I
guess I did not persevere enough. Now that I know what they are I did
a search on "scale insects" and have seen pictures and that is exactly
what they are. I also read that you can buy ladybirds and wasps that
live off them. The wasps need a warm temperature, so I cannot use them
yet, but I am wondering about buying the ladybirds.